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Quantifying the Initial Unfolding of Bacteriorhodopsin Reveals Retinal Stabilization
摘要： The forces that stabilize membrane proteins remain elusive to precise quantification. Particularly important but poorly resolved are the forces present during a membrane protein’s initial unfolding, where the most native set of interactions are present. We developed a high-precision, atomic force microscopy assay to study the initial unfolding of bacteriorhodopsin. We discovered rapid near-equilibrium folding between the first three unfolding states that corresponded to the unfolding of 5 and 8 amino-acids respectively when using a cantilever optimized for 2-μs resolution. Interestingly, the third of these states was retinal stabilized and previously undetected despite being the most mechanically stable state in the whole unfolding pathway, supporting 150 pN for >1 min. We expect that this ability to measure the rapid and reversible dynamics in the initial unfolding of bacteriorhodopsin provides a platform for quantifying the energetics of membrane proteins under native-like conditions.
关键词： protein folding,single molecule force spectroscopy,site-specific bioconjugation,membrane proteins,atomic force microscopy
更新于2025-09-04 15:30:14
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Electrochemical etching of lightweight nanotips for high quality-factor quartz tuning fork force sensor: atomic force microscopy applications
摘要： Commercially available quartz tuning forks (QTFs) can be transformed into self-sensing and actuating force sensors by micro-assembling a sharp tip on the apex of a tine. Mass of the tip is critical in determining the quality (Q)-factor of the sensor, therefore, fabrication of the lightweight nanotips is a precondition for high Q-factor QTF sensors. The work reports fabrication of very lightweight tungsten nanotips with a two-step electrochemical etching technique which can be used to develop high Q-factor QTF force sensor. First, a tungsten wire with protective coating at one end (1–2 mm) is etched with a trapezoidal waveform to form a lengthy (～2–5 mm) and slender (diameter ～10–40 μm) micro-needle. In the second step, sharp tip apex is fabricated with a direct current etching. High Q-factor (6600–8000) QTF force sensors have been developed with the fabricated nanotips. Atomic force microscope scanning of nano-grating and a triblock copolymer surface validates the scanning performance of the developed sensors.
关键词： quartz tuning fork,nanotips,atomic force microscopy,force sensor,electrochemical etching
更新于2025-09-04 15:30:14
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Development of a scanning probe microscopy integrated atomic layer deposition system for <i>in situ</i> successive monitoring of thin film growth
摘要： A dual chamber system integrated with atomic layer deposition (ALD) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) was developed for the successive monitoring of nanoparticles to thin film growth process. The samples were fabricated in the ALD chamber. A magnetic transmission rod enabled sample transferring between the ALD and the AFM test chambers without breaking the vacuum, avoiding possible surface morphology change when frequently varying the growth condition and oxidation under ambient condition. The sample transmission also avoids deposition and contamination on the AFM tip during the successive testing. The sample stage has machined a group of accurate location pinholes, ensuring the 10 μm2 measurement consistency. As a demonstration, the platinum thin films with different thickness were fabricated by varying ALD cycles. The surface morphology was monitored successively during the deposition. Under vacuum with controlled oxygen partial pressure, the aging and sintering phenomenon of particles has been studied in the AFM testing chamber after high temperature treatment. The integrated AFM/ALD instrument is potentially a powerful system for monitoring the thin film preparation and characterization.
关键词： platinum thin films,atomic force microscopy,in situ monitoring,atomic layer deposition,thin film growth
更新于2025-09-04 15:30:14
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Building two-dimensional materials one row at a time: Avoiding the nucleation barrier
摘要： Assembly of two-dimensional (2D) molecular arrays on surfaces produces a wide range of architectural motifs exhibiting unique properties, but little attention has been given to the mechanism by which they nucleate. Using peptides selected for their binding affinity to molybdenum disulfide, we investigated nucleation of 2D arrays by molecularly resolved in situ atomic force microscopy and compared our results to molecular dynamics simulations. The arrays assembled one row at a time, and the nuclei were ordered from the earliest stages and formed without a free energy barrier or a critical size. The results verify long-standing but unproven predictions of classical nucleation theory in one dimension while revealing key interactions underlying 2D assembly.
关键词： two-dimensional materials,atomic force microscopy,nucleation,peptides,molecular dynamics simulations
更新于2025-09-04 15:30:14
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In-doped As2Se3 thin films studied by Raman and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopies
摘要： Amorphous In-doped As2Se3 films with nominal indium contents x up to 7 at. % were prepared by thermal evaporation. Atomic force microscopy studies confirm the uniform film structure with a surface roughness near 5 nm, noticeably higher than for similarly prepared undoped As2Se3 film. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) studies enabled the chemical composition of the films to be examined. As follows from the XPS data, the In content in the film strongly decreases with the film depth. For films with x ≥ 2 at.%, Raman features attributed to transverse and longitudinal optical phonons of InAs are revealed in the Raman spectra as an evidence for the formation of InAs nanocrystallites in the As2Se3:In film under laser illumination.
关键词： X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy,amorphous,film,Raman scattering,atomic force microscopy,semiconductor nanocrystals
更新于2025-09-04 15:30:14
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Direct formation of gold nanorods on surfaces using polymer-immobilised gold seeds
摘要： Herein, we present the formation of gold nanorods (GNRs) on novel gold–poly(methyl methacrylate) (Au–PMMA) nanocomposite substrates with unprecedented growth control through the polymer molecular weight (Mw) and gold-salt-to-polymer weight ratio. For the first time, GNRs have been produced by seed-mediated direct growth on surfaces that were pre-coated with polymer-immobilised gold seeds. A Au–PMMA nanocomposite formed by UV photoreduction has been used as the gold seed. The influence of polymer Mw and gold concentration on the formation of GNRs has been investigated and discussed. The polymer nanocomposite formed with a lower Mw PMMA and 20 wt % gold salt provides a suitable medium for growing well-dispersed GNRs. In this sample, the average dimension of produced GNRs is 200 nm in length with aspect ratios up to 10 and a distribution of GNRs to nanoparticles of nearly 22%. Suitable characterization techniques such as AFM and SEM have been used to support concept of the proposed growth method.
关键词： direct surface growth,gold nanorods,nanocomposites,atomic force microscopy (AFM),poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA)
更新于2025-09-04 15:30:14
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Multimodal cantilevers with novel piezoelectric layer topology for sensitivity enhancement
摘要： Self-sensing techniques for atomic force microscope (AFM) cantilevers have several advantageous characteristics compared to the optical beam deflection method. The possibility of down scaling, parallelization of cantilever arrays and the absence of optical interference associated imaging artifacts have led to an increased research interest in these methods. However, for multifrequency AFM, the optimization of the transducer layout on the cantilever for higher order modes has not been addressed. To fully utilize an integrated piezoelectric transducer, this work alters the layout of the piezoelectric layer to maximize both the deflection of the cantilever and measured piezoelectric charge response for a given mode with respect to the spatial distribution of the strain. On a prototype cantilever design, significant increases in actuator and sensor sensitivities were achieved for the first four modes without any substantial increase in sensor noise. The transduction mechanism is specifically targeted at multifrequency AFM and has the potential to provide higher resolution imaging on higher order modes.
关键词： multimodal AFM,atomic force microscopy,multifrequency AFM,self-sensing,piezoelectric cantilever
更新于2025-09-04 15:30:14
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Enhanced Photoresponsive Graphene oxide-modified g-C3N4 for Disassembly of Amyloid β Fibrils
摘要： Protein misfolding and abnormal self-assembly lead to the aggregates of oligomer, fibrils, or senior amyloid β plaques, which is associated with the pathogenesis of many neurodegenerative diseases. Progressive cerebral accumulation of amyloid β-protein (Aβ) was widely proposed to explain the cause of Alzheimer's disease, for which one promising direction of preclinical study is to convert the pre-formed β-sheet structure of amyloid β aggregates into innocent structures. However, the conversion is even harder than the modulation of amyloidosis process. Herein, graphene oxide/carbon nitride (GO/g-C3N4) composite was developed as a good photocatalyst for irreversibly disassembling the amyloid β aggregates of Aβ (33-42) under UV. Quartz crystal microbalance, circular dichroism spectrum, atomic force microscopy, fluorescent spectra, and mechanical property analysis were performed to analyze this photo-degradation process from different aspects for fully understanding the mechanism, which may provide an important enlightenment for the relevant research in this field and neurodegenerative disease study.
关键词： Neurodegenerative disease,Amyloid β disassembly,Quartz crystal microbalance,Atomic force microscopy,Photo-degradation
更新于2025-09-04 15:30:14
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Effect of growth pressure on graphene direct growth on r-plane and c-plane sapphires by low-pressure CVD
摘要： Graphene was grown on both r-plane and c-plane sapphires by low-pressure chemical vapor deposition without using a metal catalyst. The growth pressure was systematically changed to investigate how the growth pressure effects the graphene growth. Consequently, it was found that the coverage of the graphene increased with increasing growth pressure on the r-plane sapphire while it decreased with increasing growth pressure on the c-plane sapphire. Raman spectroscopy and atomic force microscopy indicates that the growth layer is single-layer graphene on the r-plane sapphire while it is a bi-layer on the c-plane sapphire. Graphene is thought to grow on the r-plane sapphire simply in a two-dimensional nucleation mode. On the other hand, graphene tends to grow in the pits formed on the surface of the c-plane sapphire. The pits are thought to be produced by the oxygen desorption and have some catalytic effects.
关键词： sapphire,low-pressure CVD,atomic force microscopy,growth pressure,graphene,Raman spectroscopy
更新于2025-09-04 15:30:14
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Study of the Interface of the Early Stages of Growth under Quasi-Equilibrium Conditions of ZnO on Graphene/Cu and Graphite
摘要： The study of the early stages of growth of ZnO on graphene supported on Cu and on highly oriented pyrolytic graphite by means of reactive thermal evaporation of metallic Zn at room temperature is presented. This growth method allows to go in depth in the study of the fundamental interaction between ZnO and graphene at the interface in quasi-equilibrium conditions. Quantitative, chemical, and morphological analysis is performed using photoemission spectroscopy, atomic force, and scanning microscopies as experimental characterization techniques and factor analysis and inelastic peak shape analysis as modeling techniques. The growth of ZnO on a highly oriented pyrolytic graphite substrate is also studied using the same growth method for comparison. The results show that, in spite that the first atomic layer of both substrates is identical, the growth kinetics and morphology of the deposits are completely different. A model for the kinetics of the growth of ZnO on both substrates is proposed.
关键词： X-ray photoemission spectroscopy,early stages of growth,ZnO/graphene interfaces,atomic force microscopy,nanostructured ZnO thin films
更新于2025-09-04 15:30:14